That's one thing about military careers that a lot of civilians don't get - even if one never sees combat, one likely faces more than a few ethical and moral challenges along the way...and when one takes a stand, it can end one's career.

On my last hitch I was stationed on board a carrier. While we were on deployment, I worked for a Chief Master-at-Arms who *knew* I didn't like him at all. But then one day he blew the whistle when the Command Master Chief (the senior enlisted on board) accepted a lap dance from a female Chief at a ship's party (with junior enlisted present) in a bar on liberty in Hobart, Tasmania.

The CMC was very well-liked by the other Chiefs, so the Chief MAA was instantly hated and rejected by his peers. None would talk to him or even sit at the same table with him for the months remaining in the deployment.

But dammit, he did the right thing by raising the flag for the obvious conflict of interest. I couldn't help in any way that counted, but my retirement ceremony was later that year, so I used my retirement speech to tell him that what he did took courage, and I'd sail with him anywhere. The other senior personnel present didn't say anything, but their disapproval was written all over their faces. But somebody needed to give that man public credit at a time that mattered, and I think it meant all the more coming from someone who he knew didn't like him, to know that he'd earned my respect.

I know that as a JAG, you saw much worse than that - retiring as an E-6, I only had worm's-eye views of larger command issues. But in my experience, I have infinitely more respect for military justice system - imperfect as it is - than the one that civilians have to tolerate.